A Change in Destiny
by Night of the Fallen
Summary: Sometimes, seeing what the future will hold can be a blessing. Sometimes, it's a curse. And sometimes, it can change everything. It's time for a new adventure. A different adventure. But while some things may have changed for the better, others may have changed for the worst...


Why, hello. Welcome to the first Kingdom Hearts fanfiction I've written in approximately three years! That's a long time.

This story emerged from a plot bunny that's been nagging me for a couple of weeks, and I'm really hoping to get past the first chapter. I know I haven't had a good track record with finishing stories in the past. But this one's still developing in my head, and I'm hoping having fresh ideas for this will keep me motivated.

I can't promise a new chapter immediately, to anyone who's interested. I'm in university now, so my time is eaten up by that. But I promise, new chapter in at the most three weeks. Hopefully.

Onward to a new adventure! Welcome to _A Change in Destiny_!

* * *

The Elder gazed sadly at the images flickering in the basin below him. The moon shone above, its brightness belying its purpose in the Elder's gazing. He shook his head, as destruction and loss raged below him. The man shut his eyes, and steeled himself for the decision he would have to make.

Things had to change. He could not allow what he saw to come to pass.

He was sorry, truly, for the bonds he would break, in doing this. He was sorry for the pain he would cause. But it was far better than the alternative. Far better than the fate they had laid out before them in their decisions.

He opened his eyes and stood. Gathering the necessary items as quickly as he could, he hurried about his starlit place, setting things where they had to go. With one final item in place, he could begin the ceremony.

The ceremony that would change everything.

The moon shone on as the wheel of time began to move backwards.

* * *

"Ha!"

"Sora, you-!" The soft sound of a body hitting sand mingled with a young man's laughter. A young man, long silver hair adorning his head, stared up at his best friend, clearly irritated. Another young man, messy brown spikes shaking back and forth as he laughed at the look on his friend's face, offered a hand. Sighing, Riku Ka'aukai took Sora Makani's hand and got up, dusting the sand off his clothes.

Sora leaned back and crossed his arms behind his head. "I got you pretty good, didn't I?" Riku opened his mouth to retort, but a female voice stopped him.

"Guys!" Both spun to face the newcomer, a young blonde-haired girl in a white sundress.

"Namine!" Riku greeted her, smiling. The young woman was clutching an envelope. Sora yelped and snatched it out of her hands, much to the girl's annoyance.

"From Roxas?" Sora asked. Namine huffed, but nodded anyway. Sora tore open the envelope immediately, pulling out a folded piece of paper. He opened it and began reading out loud.

 _Sora, Riku, Namine,_

 _Training has been going great. I've chosen my weapon – well, two actually. Dual swords. I don't have a shield, but it's alright. I can still block._

 _Our captain's pretty tough. And odd. His name is Goofy, though he doesn't really have a last name. He just tells us to call him Captain. The army's weird, really. It seems so disorganized, but it still manages to run pretty well. We've been practicing [REDACTED] and it's been going really well. We're heading to [REDACTED] next. Maybe I'll catch a glimpse of the princess! I hear she's really kind and gentle._

 _This is all the time I have right now for writing. Maybe once we get to [REDACTED], I'll have more time to write; I don't know._

 _All the best,_

 _Roxas_

"He sounds happy." Riku commented, looking at the chicken scratch writing over Sora's shoulder. "Still can't write for shit, though." Namine just smiled.

"So, he's going to Radiant Garden then?" She asked. Sora looked up at her in confusion.

"How do you know that?" Sora scratched his head. "The location's been crossed out in the letter." Namine just rolled her eyes.

"Seriously, Sora. No wonder you're failing English." She snatched the letter from Sora's fingers, ignoring his surprised protests. "It says here that the princess is supposedly very kind and gentle. Where would he be going that has a princess and a military training outpost? As far as I know, or, at least, what the news has told me, the only worlds with military outposts are Radiant Garden, Twilight Town, and Disney Castle. Twilight Town only has a mayor, and Disney Castle has Queen Minnie, but no heirs yet. So the only place can be Radiant Garden, where Princess Kairi lives." Sora blinked at her.

"… Oh. Yeah." He rubbed the back of his head. Riku sighed.

"Man, you're slow sometimes." Sora whirled around.

"Hey, I didn't see you figuring it out either!" Sora challenged. Riku took the bait, and got in Sora's face.

"Namine was already saying it! I didn't need to repeat it!" The boys pressed their foreheads together, staring, daring the other to look away first. Namine just pressed her hands together, staring worriedly at the letter.

"Guys…" She murmured. The two ceased their posturing and looked at the female member of their little group. She looked back up at them. "Why is he going to Radiant Garden? They said the general training would only take place in Twilight Town." Sora shrugged, but he could see why Namine was worried. Roxas was barely four weeks into training. Usually, soldiers of the United Alliance of Worlds only moved to Radiant Garden once their training was done, because that was where the majority of the army was housed when they weren't fighting. The thought of his inexperienced younger brother suddenly going into battle unprepared sent a shiver up Sora's spine. But he pushed those thoughts away and instead focused on Namine, smiling softly at her and placing a hand on her shoulder.

"It'll be alright, Nam." Sora said gently. "Your boyfriend can handle anything." Heat suddenly rushed to Namine's face and she let out a shriek.

"He's not my boyfriend!" Riku stepped back as Namine began chasing Sora round the older boy. He folded his arms and sighed.

"Why am I surrounded by children?"

* * *

The Elder watched the children acting like children, and smiled faintly. It was good to see them like this once again. He turned to another basin, where a red-headed girl in a beautiful dress sat on a balcony and stared out at the setting sun, then to the image of a young blond-haired man hacking away at a training dummy with twin short swords, eyes filled with determination. He touched another basin with the tip of his finger, and several images flickered in rapid succession.

A young woman dressed entirely in black, with a bandanna wrapped around her forehead, threw kunai at logs, while a man with chin-length brown hair supervised her.

A red-haired man sat at a bar, staring at the lighter between his fingers. His eyes were devoid of emotion as he flicked the lighter on and off, studying the way the flame flickered and danced in the darkness of the establishment.

A mouse king stood in his grand library, pacing back and forth as the fire in the grate died. His eyes were filled with worry.

A duck sat in his study and quacked furiously at the various implements dancing magically around the room, whirling around to chastise his fellow wizard, a man with a long white beard.

Finally, the flickering image of another, much older wizard flashed across the basin. This old wizard, dressed in starry blue robes with a blue cap on his head, sat at a dark mahogany desk, his chin resting on his folded fingers. He stared down at an old, leather-bound book. The page rustled as he turned it, and he paused, as the page turned to a single image.

A gold and silver key.

* * *

"My friend?" The Elder turned away from his scrying, facing the massive warrior that now stood in his midst. The Elder chuckled and turned back to run his palm over the basins, the images within them vanishing as the water was unsettled.

"It is rare for you to visit me here." He noted dryly. The warrior, adorned in ancient-looking black armor, regarded his old friend for a moment, then shook his head.

"They worry about this decision." He murmured. "They fear you have gone too far."

"Bah!" The Elder waved a hand in the air. "Fools, all of them. They fear change. They fear interacting with mortals." The warrior raised an eyebrow.

"And you don't?" He asked. The Elder smirked.

"I am not the one who must face the chosen." He responded.

"You should, for you are the one who changed their fates." The warrior shot back. The Elder only sighed.

"A fate they cannot remember, and pray that they never do remember, for knowing what terrible fate could have awaited them may disturb them." The warrior shook his head again.

"They have a right to know, my friend. The knowledge may change what is to come." The Elder smiled sadly.

"No amount of knowledge can change their fate." He whispered, gazing up at the moon. His constant companion in these star-filled places. "Their destinies are written among the stars, and though I may change what leads up to that destiny, I cannot change the destinies themselves." He turned back to the warrior.

"If they are so desperate for me to meet the chosen, then so be it." He turned back to his basins, the moon reflecting brightly in the water. "But know that my being there when the time comes will not change anything." The warrior only shrugged.

"I know that, my friend. But I can only hope that your presence will change what the gods will attempt."

Together, the old friends returned their gazes to the moon, to the destinies that would befall six unlikely teenagers scattered across worlds.


End file.
